Latching device for swinging doors



Unite States Patent 3,005,650 LATCHING DEVICE FGR SWBNGING DOORS Charles J. Scltuessler, 137 Turner Ave, West Covina, Calif., and Herbert Wilzig, 1809 Stearns Drive, Los Angeles, Calif.

Filed June 15, 1959, Ser. No. 820,52 4 Claims. (Cl. 292-203) This invention relates to a device for retaining in closed position and locking a pair of swinging doors hinged to a door frame, and more particularly to a new and improved construction for retaining in closed position and locking two outwardly swinging doors of a cabinet, closet or the like, said retaining and locking construction including a novel rotating lock assembly, which operates by the closing and opening of the swinging doors.

In the prior art, it has been conventional, if a pair of swinging doors are to be provided for a closet, cabinet or the like, to provide means to maintain the doors in closed position, either through the use of conventional friction catches, bolts, etc., or more commonly to provide a mullion or center post vertical member and utilizing surface bolts or locks for each of the respective doors.

There are a number of disadvantages to the constructions of the prior art described above. If friction catches only are used, there is no positive locking action for the doors. If surface bolts are used, it has been necessary to manually operate the bolts, usually by reaching with difiiculty to the inside of the cabinet or closet. The result has been that conventionally, in the case of a pair of outwardly swinging doors, a mullion or center vertical post member is provided along with a pair of locks, one for each of the doors. The above disadvantages are obviated by our invention which departs completely from the disclosures of previous constructions in that we provide a construction which eliminates the mullion entirely and thus we do away with the necessity of two locks, one for each of the doors; all surface bolts which require manual operation are eliminated; and a positive locking action is provided for the two swinging doors.

The. general object of the invention is to provide a latching device which can be readily installed in connection with a pair of outwardly swinging doors for a cabinet, closet or the like, to retain the two doors in closed position, the device having a rotating lock assembly actuated by closing of one of the doors to hold both doors in closed position, thus eliminated the necessity for a mullion, manually operated surface bolts, or conventional friction door-catches.

A further object of the invention is to provide a rotating lock assembly for a door construction, including a pair of outwardly swinging doors, which rotating lock assembly may be quickly and easily installed in suitable mortises located in either the bottom frame member of said door construction, or in the top frame member of the door construction, or in both the bottom frame member and the top frame member, which rotating lock assembly, together with the strike members of each of said doors, latches the doors.

A further object of the invention is to provide a rotating lock assembly which, without the use of a mullion, together with strike members on each of said doors, retains a pair of swinging doors in closed position and with a simple sliding bolt actuated by a key serves to retain both doors in locked position.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a latching device for a pair of swinging doors which is composed of a minimum of parts, which is simple and inexpensive in construction, is easy to install and disassemble and which is readily adaptable for use in connection with a pair of swinging doors.

, Our invention is of broad application and may be used ice with any of various door constructions which utilize a pair of swinging doors. It is particularly adaptable, however, for cabinets, closets or the like.

In the accompanying drawings, we have illustrated, by way of example, but not by way of limitation, a specific embodiment of our invention. In such drawings, FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a cabinet construction, to show the latching device, as viewed from the inside of the cabinet, with dotted lines showing the rotating lock assembly within mortices in both the bottom frame member and top frame member, the doors being shown in closed position and the sliding bolt of the lock in locked position; FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view, from above, partly in cross-section and partly broken away, along the lines 22 of FIG. 1, with dotted lines showing the rotating lock assembly; FIG. 3 is a vertical crosssection taken along the lines 33 in the direction of the arrows of FIG. 2; FIG. 4 is a vertical cross section taken along the lines 4-4 of FIG. '2 in the direction of the arrows; and FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-section taken along the lines 5-5 of FIG. 2 in the direction of the arrows.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, in which similar reference characters identify similar parts in the several views, as shown in FIG. 1, the numeral 10 designates generally a door frame which has a bottom horizontal door frame member 11, a top horizontal door frame member 12, a first vertical door frame member 13 and a second vertical door frame member 14. A first door 15 is secured by hinges 16 and 17 to the first vertical door frame member 13 so that said first door 15 may swing open in a clockwise direction and swing closed in a counter-clockwise direction. A second door 18 is secured by hinges 19 and 20 to the second vertical door frame member 14 so that said second door 18 may swing open in a counter-clockwise direction and swing closed in a clockwise direction.

Centrally located in the top horizontal door frame member 12 is a rectangular cavity or mortise 21 adapted to receive the rotating lock assembly designated generally as 22. Also centrally located in the bottom horizontal door frame member 11 is a rectangular notch or mortise 23 adapted to receive the rotating lock assembly generally designated as 24.

In the case of doors 15 and 18 of relatively large size, we prefer to use the two rotating lock assemblies 22 and 24, as illustrated in FIG. 1, one for the top horizontal door frame member 12 and one for the bottom horizontal door frame member 11. However, in the case of cabinet doors of small size, we may use only one rotating lock assembly 24, preferably for the bottom horizontal door frame member 11. Since the operation of the rotating lock assemblies 22 and 24 are similar, we will describe the operation in connection with the rotating lock assembly 24, as illustrated in FIGS.'2 through 5.

The rotating lock assembly 24 consists of a base plate member 25 provided with a plurality of holes 26 for securing said base plate member 25' to the face of the bottom horizontal door frame member 11 by means of a plurality of screws 27. The base plate member 25 has a first rectangular slot 28 adapted to have a first keeper or bolt 29 pass theret-hrough. The base plate member 25 has a second slot 30 adapted to have a second keeper or bolt 31 pass therethrough. Fromthe material of the base plate member 25 a first upturned flange portion 32 is formed which presents a wall projecting laterally of the base plate member 25 on one side of said second slot 36* and the flange portion 32 terminates at its outer extremity in an inwardly projecting horizontal flange 33. A second upturned flange portion 34 is similarly formed of the material of the base member 25 which presents a wall projecting laterally of the base plate member 25 on the other side of said sec- 3 V ond slot 30 and the flange portion 34 terminates at its outer extremity in an inwardly projecting flange 35. The first upturned vertical flange portion 32 and the second upturned flange portion 34 form a guideway therebetween, the guideway being adapted to slidably receive a strike member, Within the retaining shoulder thus formed, as will be explained below. By means of a plurality of rivets 36, a shaft housing or sleeve 37 is secured to the underside of the base plate member 25. The shaft hous ing 37 retains a rotatable shaft 38. The first keeper 29 is pivotally mounted on the shaft 38 at one end thereof and is adapted, when the shaft 38 is rotated, to pass through the first slot '28 in the base plate member 25. The second keeper 31 is pivotally secured to the shaft 38 at the other end thereof and is adapted, when the shaft 3-8 is rotated, to pass through the second slot 30 in the base plate member 25. A helical spring or tension member 3915 positioned around a portion of the shaft 38, one end 40 of the spring 39 being retained in a hole 41 in the first keeper 29, the other end 42 of the spring 39 bearing against the underside of the shaft housing 37 to normally'ietain said first keeper 29, under urging'of the spring39, in'the position where the finger 43 thereof below the surface of the base plate member and to normally retain the finger 44 of the second keeper 31 in a position above the surface of the base plate member 25;

' A holding strike member, generally designated as 45, has a horizontal striker face 46 of a width slightly narrower than the distance between the first upturned flange portion 32 and thesecond upturned flange portion 34, which flange portions 32Qahd 34 together act as a guideway for the reception of the horizontal striker face 46 of the holding strike member 45. The horizontal striker face 46 of the holding strike member 45 has a flange 47'provided with holes 48 for securing the flange 47 to the inside faceof the second swinging door 18 by means of screws 49. At the other extremity of the horizontal striker face 47 of the holding strike member 45 is a diagonal arm 50 of narrower width than the horizontal face 46 ofthe' holding strike member 45 so that at the juncture of the diagonal arm 50 and the horizontal striker face 46, the horizontal striker face 46 and the diagonal 50 may pass unobstructed between the inwardly projecting" flange 33 of the first upturned flange 32 and. the-inwardly projecting flange 35 of the second upturned flange 34, as shown mostclearly in FIG. 1. The diagonal arm 50 terminates in a flange 51 provided with a slot' 52 for securing the flange 51 to the inside face of the second swinging door 18 by means of the screws 53. The

slot- 52 permits adjustment of the horizontal striker face 46=torinsure proper slidable'reception through the guide- Way formed by the flange portions 32 and 34 of the base plate member- 25; y I

A latching strike member, generally designated as 54, has a horizontal striker face 55 with a slot 56 formed therein by forming from the material of the horizontal striker face 55 the finger member 57. The slot 56 in the horizontal striker face 55 is adapted to receive the hooked finger 43 of thefirst keeper 29 in locking position, the fingermember 57 exerting tension against the finger 43 when the finger 43 is rotatedto the position shown in FIG. 4.- The horizontal striker face 55 of the latching strike member 54 has a flange 58 provided with holes 59 for securing theflange 58 to the inside face of the first door 15 by means of screws 60. At the other extremity of thehorizo'ntal striker face 55 of the latching strike member- 54 is a' diagonal arm61. The diagonal arm 61 termimates in a flange 62 provided with a slot 63 for securing the flange62'to the inside face of the first swinging door 15 by means of a screw 64. The slot 633 permits adjustment of the horizontal striker face 55 to insure proper reception of the finger'43pof the first keeper 29 and proper tension of the finger member 57 against the finger 43 of the first keeper 29.

As noted above, normally, when the swinging doors 15 and 18 are open, under urging of the spring member 39, the finger 43 of the first keeper 29 is below the surface of the base plate member 25 and the finger 4 4 of the second keeper 31 projects through the second slot 3%) above the surface of the base plate member 25, In operation, when it is desired to close the doors of the cabinet or closet, the second swinging door 18 is swung in a clockwise direction about its hinges 19 and 20. When this operation is performed, the horizontal face 46 of the holding strike member 45 begins to enter the guideway formed between the upturned flange portions 32 and 34. At the same time the curved surface 65 of the holding strike member 45, formed at the junction of the horizontal striker face 46 and the diagonal arm 50 contacts the finger 44 of the second keeper so that when said second door 18 is moved to its completely closed position, the shaft 38 is rocked against the tension of the helical spring 39,- Which causes the first keeper 29 to pivot with its hooked finger 43 projecting through the first slot 28 of the base plate member 25 and assume the positionrshown in FIG. 4. When the second door 18 has been moved to theco-mpletely closed position, as shown most clearly in FIG. 3, the second keeper 31, under tension of the spring 3-9, serves to maintain the second door 18 in closed position by exerting tension against the horizontal holding striker face 46, the horizontal striker face '46 in turn being retained in position by the first upturned flange portion 32 with its inwardly projecting flange 34 and the second upturned flange portion 34 with its inwardly projecting flange 35, said flanges 32, 33, 34' and 35 forming a guideway.

If, whenthe second swinging door 18 is closed, as described above, the first door 15 is in an already closed position, the first keeper 29, when thus pivoted, will have the finger 43 thereof pass through the first slot 28 of the base plate member 25 and thence through the slot 56' of the-horizontal face 55- of the latching strike member 54. The finger 43 has a concave internal depression 66, forming a hook, so that the door 15 will remain in closed and locked' position, the hooked finger 43 serving to lock the latching strike member 54 in such closed position.

If, however, when t-he second swinging door 18 is closed, as described above, the first swinging door 15 is in open position, the first swinging door may be brought to closed position by swinging the door 15 in a counterclcckwise direction about its hinges 16 and 17. When this operation is performed, the horizontal face 55 of the latching strike member 54 rides over the curved surface 67 of the first keeper 29s finger 43 and when the door 15 is moved to its completely closed position, the finger 43 snaps into and fits within the slot 56 of the horizontal'face 55 of the latching strike member 54 to lock the latching strike member 54 in closed position thus retaining the first door 15 in locked relationship.

When'both doors 15 and 18 are in closed position, they will thusboth be retained in such closed position, the first swinging door 15 being positively locked (and cannot be'opened' unless the second swinging door 18 is opened causing the finger '43 of the first keeper 29 to' pivot and be disengaged from the slot 56- in the horizontal face 55 of the latchingstrike member 54), while the second swinging door 18 is 'heldclose'd under spring tension, as de-' scribed above. To positively lock both doors, a lock, designated generally as 63; as shown in FIG. 1, is affixed to the inside face of the second swinging door 18'by thescrews69. The lock 68-has a sliding bolt 70, which bolt 70, when thrown by a key, inconventional manner, is fi tended to a position toact upon the first door 15. Since the first door 15 is positively looked, as described above, once the bolt 70 is thrown to the closed position, as shown G' Se ond swinging door 18 also becomes positively locked, as any attempt to open the second door 18 is resisted by the bolt 70 acting against the inside face of the first door 15, which is held securely closed.

We have found that the various parts of the rotating lock assembly may be made of suitable metal. We prefer to make the keepers 29 and 31 of brass, which has durable characteristics, and the shaft 38 of solid stainless steel. Likewise, we prefer to make the base plate member 25 of brass, utilizing brass screws, where the use of screws are indicated. We prefer to make the strike members 56 and 54 of spring steel, suitably plated, although any metal of suflicient resiliency may be used. Suitable handles, not illustrated, may be provided for the respective doors.

While we have described a particular embodiment of our inventive structure, it is clear that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of our invention.

We claim:

1. A latching device for cabinets or the like having first and second swinging doors, door frame members, a first vertical door frame member having a first door swingably hinged thereon and a second vertical door frame member having a second door swingably hinged thereon comprising a mortise in a horizontal door frame member adapted to receit e a rotating lock assembly, comprising a base plate member adapted for securing to a horizontal door frame member having a mortise therein, a first slot in said base member, a second slot in said base plate member, guide means on the top of said base plate member alongside said second slot in said base plate member serving as a guideway, a shaft rotatably secured beneath said base plate member, a first keeper secured to said rotatable shaft adapted to pass through said first slot in said base plate member, said first keeper having a hooked finger With a front cam curved surface and a rear concavity, a second keeper secured to said rotatable shaft adapted to pass through said second slot in said base plate member, said second keeper having a finger, tension means acting to urge said first keeper in a position below the top surface of said base plate member and acting to urge said second keeper in a position above the top surface of said base plate member, a holding strike member secured to said second door adapted to slidably pass through said guide means on said base plate member when said second door is swung to closed position, a latching strike member secured to said first door, said latching strike member having a horizontal face with a slot formed therein adapted to receive the hooked finger of said first keeper, said holding strike member being adapted to contact said second keeper when said second door is moved to closed position and to rock said rotatable shaft against the tension of said tension means thus rotating the hooked finger of said first keeper into locking position above the surface of said base plate member, said second keeper, under tension, serving to maintain said second door in closed position by exerting tension against said holding strike member, said strike member in turn being retained in position by said guide means acting as a guideway on said base plate member, said latching strike member being adapted to ride over said front cam curved surface of the finger of said first keeper when said first door is moved to closed position, said hooked finger of said first keeper being received by the slot in said latching strike member serving to retain said first door in locked position.

2. The structure according to claim 1 in which said guide means on the top of said base plate member serving as a guideway includes a first upturned vertical flange portion presenting a wall projecting laterally of the base plate member on one side of said second slot and terminating at its upper extremity in a horizontal flange projecting inwardly, a second upturned vertical flange portion presenting a wall projecting laterally of the base plate member on the opposite side of said second slot and terminating at its upper extremity in a horizontal flange projecting inwardly, said first and second upturned flanges, along with said inwardly projecting horizontal flanges, forming a guideway for slidable reception therebetween of said holding strike member.

3. The structure according to claim 2 in which said holding strike member is of resilient material consisting of a horizontal striker face of a width slightly narrower than the distance between said first and second upturned flange portions acting as a guideway on said base plate member and adapted to slidably pass through said guideway, said horizontal striker face terminating at one extremity in a diagonal arm of narrower width than the width of said horizontal striker face adapted to slidably pass through the space between the inwardly projecting horizontal flanges of said first and second upturned flange portions on said base plate member.

4. The structure according to claim 3, in which said diagonal arm terminates in a flange having a slot for adjustably-securing said holding strike member to said second swinging door, said horizontal striker face terminates at the outer extremity thereof in a flange adapted to be secured to said first swinging door, and said latching strike member terminates at one extremity thereof in a flange adapted to be secured to said first swinging door, and at the outer extremity thereof in a diagonal arm having at its outer end a slotted flange for adjustable attachment to said first swinging door.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 172,106 Feige n Jan. 11, 1876 185,534 Hinde Dec. 19, 1876 788,626 Bohne 4 May 2, 1905 891,667 Browning June 23, 1908 2,689,758 Orr Sept. 21, 1954 2,809,061 Beyer Oct. 8, 1957 2,816,786 Harper Dec. 17, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,439 Great Britain Jan. 15, 1884 467,938 Great Britain June 25, 1937 804,986 France Aug. 17, 1936 

